Early affirmation
From the way-back files
Like a lot of novelists, I started with short stories – so long ago that I kept a stash of large manila envelopes to mail the hard copies to small literary magazines all over the country, complete with enclosed SASEs. Those, children, were stamped self-addressed envelopes in which the editors in question would send their rejections — so many rejections.
But in 2010, something wonderful happened. Delmarva Review (the name references my home region of Delaware, Maryland and Virginia) accepted my short story, On Fire, about wildland firefighters in Montana. Baltimore Magazine called it “tender and peculiar,” still one of my favorite reviews, and Delmarva Review was kind enough to nominate it for a Pushcart Prize.
The magazine recently contacted me about including it in their 15th anniversary anthology. To say I was thrilled is an understatement. The news took me back to those years of working-working-working toward what seemed a futile dream of ever becoming a novelist. That early acceptance meant the world to me, a glimmer of hope that maybe that dream would someday become a reality. To this day, twelve published novels later and a thirteenth set for publication in May, I still pinch myself that the dream continues to come true.
So here’s my shout-out to the Delmarva Review and all the places like it that help writers along their journey. Profound gratitude.
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I’ll be among the writers taking part in The Best of Delmarva Review 2008-2023 Reading,” at The Writer’s Center, in Bethesda, Maryland, at 2 p.m. on Saturday, January 11.
Book news: New title! Cover reveal! Pre-order links!
The book took its original title, Timeless Pastures, from the fictional retirement community in which the story is set. (Cue the Out to Pasture cracks.) The smart folks at Severn House went with a much more fun title, and a fun cover to match. This book is my first “cozy” mystery, meaning the violence – it is, after all, a murder mystery – is largely off the page. I think the new title reflects the fact that the senior citizens who populate its pages are anything but rocking-chair porch-sitters. It comes out May 6; most pre-order links are here.
Bake of the month: French focaccia
King Arthur Baking is one of my go-to sites for bread recipes, so when their Big Book of Bread came out, of course I ordered it.
This month has been crazy busy, so I leafed through it for something quick and relatively easy. I came up with fougasse, which as far as I can tell is a French version of focaccia. I snipped the last of the rosemary in my patio garden, found a jar of Kalamata olives in the pantry, and gave it a whirl. The bread is formed into a triangle, ideally with cut-outs to make it resemble a leaf. I didn’t quite get those right, but regardless of the look, the taste was terrific. I’m looking forward to trying it again, along with others from the book, once the holiday rush is over.
What I’m reading: A testament to these times?
I didn’t plan it this way, but both of this month’s books are novelized versions of real events and matters that feel all too contemporary,
In M: Son of the Century, Antonio Scurati chronicles the decades that comprised Benito Mussolini’s rise to power and the corresponding birth of fascism in Italy. Its size – nearly 800 pages – should be intimidating, but it’s riveting. Maybe, just maybe, because of the times we’re in, Scurati’s novel resonates, in ways that give me chills, and not the good kind.
I was hesitant to read Old King, Maxim Loskutoff’s novel about the Unabomber, because, well, Unabomber. I shouldn’t have been. Loskutoff is a marvelous writer, whose deep compassion for his characters in the down-and-out former-mining/former-logging town of Lincoln, Montana, shines through. As with Scurati’s book, their discontent holds lessons for our time.
Events: Annnnd we’re live again
After the Zoom years of Covid and beyond, it was wonderful to attend two in-person events this month.
The Archmere book club in Wilmington, Delaware, read my third novel, Disgraced (recently re-released by Open Road Media) featuring journalist Lola Wicks and set in central Wyoming. That book was published in 2016, and it was interesting to go back over about the issues it explored; mainly, the problems faced by veterans returning from Afghanistan. So many thoughtful questions – it was a terrific evening.
And, when the Delectable Gourmet Writing Group in Milford, Conn., invites you to one of their weekly meetings, of course you say yes! The food lived up to the group’s name and the writing was equally sublime.
Sign me up
I love talking with groups about books or writing in general, either in person or via the magic of Zoom. I also give writing workshops, perfect for libraries and writing groups. Interested? You can contact me via my website or by messaging me here.
Beautiful story, Gwen! 🌹🌹